What would Drink Up Week be without a look into the drink all Soda Citizens have in common — the Columbia Water system?
With Columbia being the first planned city in the US, it is no wonder that Cola's drinking water also has a long history. Today, Columbia’s water system serves 375,000 customers in the Midlands from two sources: the Broad River Diversion Canal + Lake Murry. Combined, the sources produce an average of 60 million gallons daily.
Let’s dive into the 200+ year history of our water system and take a glance at the modernization currently underway.
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đźš° Back to the beginning
While Columbia wasn’t chartered as a city until 1854, our water system dates back to April 1821, when a 12-horsepower steam engine manufactured in Manchester, England, began pumping water from a spring in (what is now Finlay Park) to a reservoir in Arsenal Hill.
The water system was financed in full by Colonel Abram Blanding — who paid $75,000 or $1.89 million in today’s money — creating a system of 17,654 ft of cast iron pipe to distribute water throughout what is now the downtown area.
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🚰 Cola’s water timeline
1818 | Thanks to an act and resolution from the SC General Assembly, lawyer and part-time school teacher Colonel Abram Blanding (the namesake of Blanding Street) was contracted to finance and construct the town’s first waterworks. 1907 | Construction of the Columbia Broad River Canal Water Treatment Plant, the region’s first “modern” water treatment plant, is complete and begins pumping at a capacity of six million gallons per day.
2015 | During the week of October 3-4, Columbia experienced a “thousand-year flood” that caused a 60 ft breach in the Columbia Canal, one of the city's main sources of drinking water. A temporary rock dam was built as an immediate fix and is still in place today.
Today, Columbia Water continues to modernize facilities and move our system into the future by installing digital meters, replacing aging equipment, and conducting ~200,000 certified lab samples per year. With the capacity to provide ~159 million gallons of clean water daily, our facilities are working to ensure for future growth in the Midlands.
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Today - Studio Fire Brewery Tour at Columbia Craft | Fri. July 29 | 5:30-6:30 p.m. | Columbia Craft Brewing, 520 Greene St. | Well Flow, Studio Fire’s signature style class, combines yoga with high-intensity interval training.
- RCRC’s Reading Under the Lights | Fri., July 29 | 7-9 p.m. | Caughman Road Park, 2733 Trotter Rd. | Free | Richland County Recreation Commission presents a night of family fun that includes free books for children, food + drinks, and activities for all ages.
Saturday - Songwriters in the Round-Summer Bash Supporting Camp Cole | Sat., July 30 | 6-11 p.m. | Seawell's Catering, 1125 Rosewood Dr. | $25 | Featuring songs and stories from artists Blake Weinbach, Shelby Raye, and Anslee Davidson, proceeds from the event go to support Camp Cole 🎶
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Make Your Own Pottery | Sat., July 30 | 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m. | Parker Annex Archaeology Center, 2025 Barnwell Street | Free | The Make Your Own Pottery activity from the SCDNR Archaeology team allows kids to create their own pottery and learn about different types of pottery discovered in SC.
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COLAughs at NoMa Warehouse | Sat., July 30 | 7:30 p.m. | NoMa Warehouse, 2222 Sumter St. | $15.50 | Jenn Snyder headlines COLAughs comedy night joined by Charlotte comedians Grace Hauth + Joy Wills and hosted by Allie Johns. 🎤
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Grunge-a-palooza: Tribute to 90s grunge classics | Sat., July 30 | 7 p.m. | New Brookland Tavern, 122 State St. | $20 | Bust out those faded + ripped jeans and cut the sleeves off a flannel shirt to look the part as you rock out to 1990s grunge classics. 🎸
Sunday - Halloween with Heat | Sun. July 31 | 6-10 p.m. | NoMa Warehouse, 2222 Sumter St. | Free | Get dressed up and join for a costume catwalk, music, tricks, treats, drinks, a bizarre bazaar, and more at this midsummer night's scream.
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Front Porch Swing — The Jasper Project | Sun., July 31 | 2-4 p.m. | One Columbia Arts Co-op, 1013 Duke Avenue | Free | Featuring Cola artist Bentz Kirby, the Front Porch Swing on the last Sunday of each month offers a space for local musicians to showcase their work.
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Sunday Jazz Brunch | Sun., July 31 | 12 p.m. | Chayz Lounge, 607 Meeting St. | Free | Space is limited, so arrive early to sing and sway with the Rod Foster Trio. 🥓
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Jersey Boys by Broadway In Columbia | Sun., July 31 | 7:30 p.m. | Koger Center for the Arts | $43+ | The rescheduled show will honor tickets from its original date.
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We have a monthly guide filled with events + activities you can plan for in advance. Click the button below to bookmark ideas for upcoming date nights, family outings, and time with friends. |
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The ballpark is a great place to share a drink with friends this summer. | Photo provided by the Columbia Fireflies |
Fans can stay cool while cheering on the Fireflies this summer with these drink specials (available at the Budweiser Bowtie Bar, the Wicked Weed Bar, or one of the stadium’s beer stands): - Miller Lite $2 Tuesday: Enjoy $2 hot dogs, popcorn, fountain sodas, and 12-oz. cans of Miller Lite.
- White Claw Wednesday: Sip on a 16-oz. White Claw Seltzer for $5.
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Budweiser Thirsty Thursday: Grab $2 12-oz. Bud Light cans and half-priced draft beer + fountain sodas.*
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Weather - 96Âş | Partly cloudy | 18% chance of rain
Ranked -
No. 2. The ranking Lexington Medical Center received on US News’s list of Best Hospitals in SC. The hospital makes the list for performing highly in four specialties + 16 procedures/conditions, like colon cancer surgery and heart bypass procedures. 💉
Eat Watch -
Cola native Chaz Bear and his band Toro y Moi performed their song “Millennium” on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon earlier this week. Chaz is a graduate of both Ridge View High School + UofSC, and is currently working as an artist/musician in the San Francisco Bay Area. 🎨
Coming Soon -
The Grand Opening of Where Ya Bin will be on Fri., Aug. 5 at 9 a.m. Located at 5422 Forest Dr., the store offers a unique retail experience, swapping shelves for bins + upholding great deals. Items like clothing, cosmetics, electronics, and more are all available at noticeably low costs. đź›’
Plan Ahead -
Tickets go on sale today for Koger Center’s Cirque Dreams Holidaze performance. On Tues., Dec. 6, bring your friends and family to witness the Broadway-style, contemporary circus arts production centered around the holidays. The 90-minute show will feature songs like “Deck the Halls” + “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.”
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"The SpongeBob Musical" is coming soon to the Arts Center of Kershaw County. Based on the popular animated series, SpongeBob and all his Bikini Bottom friends face chaos, friendship + heroism throughout the original on-stage tale. The show runs from Aug. 5-14. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for students.
Listen -
On the latest episode of Around Town with ColaMayor, Mayor Daniel Rickenmann speaks with Frank Cason of the Cason Development Group. The two discuss improvements and developments coming to Cola over the next few years, like projects in Forest Acres + off North Main Street. 🎧
Jobs -
Kuntai Limited Corporation announced plans to develop operations in Orangeburg County, creating 41 new jobs in the Midlands. Kuntai specializes in car floor mats + supplies for high-end manufacturers. The facility will be a base for the company to expand the business nationwide. If you’re interested, email your resume here.
Soda Citizen -
Meet Alexis Goodman, Research & Development (R&D) Formulation Lead at Nephron Pharmaceuticals. Alexis configures raw materials to form product batches and submits them to Nephron labs for additional R&D testing (and she takes her job personally since she has a family member who uses their products.)*
Announced -
Congrats to reader David K. who was randomly selected to win $1,000 cash as a thank you for completing our recent product survey. David has been contacted by our team. Thanks to all of you who let us know your preferences about our product so we can continue making it better. (Didn’t share your thoughts? You still can.)
Local -
In case you missed it, COLAtoday just launched our very own membership program. Membership starts at just $25 and helps keep our local news products free to all Soda Citizens — plus, members get perks like birthday deals, personal shoutouts, Six & Main discounts + more. Sign up. 🎉
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The @boydfoundationcolumbia shared concept drawings for the highly anticipated Broad River Pedestrian Bridge, which is part of the Saluda Riverwalk Phase II project. The bridge will connect the Saluda Riverwalk to the Canalside Riverwalk by continuing the Saluda Riverwalk trail up the Broad River to a pedestrian bridge crossing the Broad. If that sounds like a lot, here's a helpful map.
If all goes according to plan, the construction of the pedestrian bridge will be completed by the end of 2023.
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Editor's pick: I've started to plan my spring 2024 outing, which includes an afternoon at Riverbanks Zoo, followed by a bike ride across the Broad River pedestrian bridge to the Bierkeller at Canalside. The future of Cola is bright centered not only around the development of our three rivers but taking care of them as well.
Missed yesterday's newsletter? Read more about these unique wellness drinks around Cola. |
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